As our region and its economic fortunes move forward, we could all learn a lesson from the local defense sector.

Yes, the defense companies are embracing changing technology and allowing it to improve production, enhance efficiency and drive growth.

And yes, the defense firms are aggressively chasing opportunities to expand their customer bases and bring jobs to our region.

But the real moral of the defense story is this: Working together is better than working separately.

Some of the region’s top companies – defense or otherwise – are leading the way in a cooperative spirit that can only be a positive development for Johnstown and the surrounding communities.

In 2007, local heavyweights Concurrent Technologies Corp. and Johnstown Welding and Fabrication Inc. announced a partnership that will benefit both organizations. JWFI – through its subsidiary JWF Defense – is becoming a major player in the defense contracting world. CTC has loads of experience in that area.

Through their strategic collaboration, they are working together to bring commerce and jobs to our region.

That is a strong example of what is happening more and more among our defense-related organizations: They are working together to make the region more attractive to big companies and the federal government, and they are building a foundation that should keep the region strong well into the future.

You can add companies such as DRS Laurel and Kuchera Industries to the list of those working together to attract the attention of the bigger boys – the Lockheed-Martins and Boeings of the world.

And one of the big boys, Northrop Grumman, is continually expanding its local presence as part of this cooperative system. Northrop will join MTS Technologies later this year in establishing a home at the new Greater Johnstown Technology Park.

What we’re seeing is an integrated system in Johnstown where companies offer essentially one-stop shopping for defense contractors – from research and development to design and engineering to manufacturing and fabrication.

“I do think those big guys are going to be here for a long while because they found just what they want here,” Bill Kuchera, CEO of Kuchera Industries and Kuchera Defense, says in this week’s Progress 2008 special report.

“They know the value of what they get here,” Kuchera said. “They get a tremendous price and quality that is unsurpassed.”

Sounds like a sales slogan, and in some ways it is.

These companies are selling our region to the folks who make decisions about million-dollar and billion-dollar projects.

And that same approach can be used in the development of smaller companies.

“We have to find ways to co-evolve,” said local software entrepreneur Mike Hruska, “and find creative ways to organize and collaborate.”

You might think cooperation would be the hallmark of regional growth.

It should be. But still too often we see companies – as well as local governments, non-profit agencies, tourism groups, schools and other organizations – choosing instead to do their own thing.

We have seen cooperation in some areas, most notably the efforts of the city of Johnstown, the Convention and Visitors Bureau, the Cambria County War Memorial Arena and the Pasquerilla Conference Center to market the facilities in the downtown.

But we want to see more.

The “silo” mentality – establishing barriers around ourselves that don’t allow for working with others in new ways – is a sure-fire way to squash growth and inhibit opportunities.

At a minimum, a “silo” system is inefficient. At worst, it’s selfish, short-sighted and ultimately destructive.

Reaching across the street or across town doesn’t need to be an impediment to competition. Businesses still need to look out for their bottom lines, their employees and their stakeholders.

But by working together, we can develop and maintain a business climate here that is attractive to organizations which might be inclined to bring jobs to our region, and which allows for businesses already here to enjoy the best chance of surviving and thriving.